My Grouch of a Boyfriend
by Wolfsnivy700
Summary: Dawn goes to Veilstone Boarding School for the second year. But dating the school's grouchiest boy is bound to come with challenges! This is a sequel to My Jerk of a Crush. It contains Ikarishipping, Advanceshipping, Orangeshipping, Flavescentshipping, and Geekchicshipping.
1. A New Year!

**Hi guys! I finally made it! This is a sequel to** _ **My Jerk of a Crush.**_ **If you haven't read it, that's fine, but thiswill make a bit more sense if you've read it. So this story is going to be hopefully a bit more put together and less cliche. Enjoy!**

 _"'When every life meets another, something will be born.' -Words of wisdom by our lovely champion, Cynthia! That will conclude our champion documentary for today. Stay tuned for next week's episode, 'Red, the Silent Master'! Next up-"_

Dawn shut off her television, and started writing. Her homework assignment for over the summer was to write a paper on a famous Pokemon trainer, so she looked on the Pokebio channel and found a documentary on the Sinnoh champion, Cynthia.

Forty-five minutes later, Dawn printed out her final copy of the report. She scanned over it and was pleased with her work. She put it in her binder, and flopped on her bed. School started in two days, and she'd been procrastinating the entire summer, so she had frantically put together her presentation at the last minute, but she was finally done.

Dawn's phone buzzed. She picked it up, good. She unlocked the phone and read the text.

 _Hey._

 _Hi,_ Dawn typed. _What's up?_

 _Not much, just wondering if you wanted to go to Sawsbuck's tonight._

 _I wish I could, but I promised my mom I would watch Harry Potter with her tonight. Sorry!_ Dawn texted back.

 _Okay, that's fine. I'll see you at school on Monday._

 _Okay!_

Dawn closed the text just as her mother called her. "Dawn! Prisoner of Azkaban is starting!"

"Coming Mom!" Dawn yelled, and headed down the stairs.

MONDAY MORNING

Dawn hastily pulled her leggings on, and put her hair up. Her mom ushered her into the car, and they set out for the school.

Dawn hugged her mother goodbye once they got there, and pulled her bags up to her dorm. She unlocked it with her dorm key, and plopped her bags next to her bunk bed. Her three roomates, Iris, Misty, and May were also dropping of their things. The three of them turned around, saw Dawn, and squealed. They crushed her in a giant group hug.

"Hey guys!" Dawn managed.

"I can't believe it, you've got taller!" Misty said, happily.

"How is it at home?"May questioned.

"How's it going with Paul?" Iris asked, excitedly.

"Guys, I'd love to answer your questions _after_ class," Dawn said, pointing to her watch. So they all rushedto class. They got to Pokemon History class just in time. They all sat down at their usual desks. Dawn plopped down next to Paul.

"Hi," she said breathlessly.

"What took you so long?" Paul questioned.

"Misty, Iris and May kept asking questions," Dawn replied. They couldn't continue their conversation, however, because just then their teacher, Professor Oak entered the room.

Class started, and they learned about how the first Pokedex was created. After that, they headed to Pokemon Evolution Study with Professor Sycamore.

After classes that day, Dawn headed up to her dorm room. She hadn't really got a chance to talk to Paul that day. The first day of school had been exhausting, so she went to sleep soon after she talked with her mom on the video phone.

 **How'd you like it? See you!**


	2. New Students!

**Hello again! This chapter might be a tad short, but hopefully, it'll be good!**

"Paul. _Paul._ Earth to Paul."

Paul snapped out of the daydream he was having, and looked over at Trip, his roomate/friend. "What?"

"You haven't touched any of your food," Trip said. "What's wrong?" Paul sighed, and started eating his pancakes. Trip looked at him. "Is it about Dawn?"

"Every time I ask if she wants to go somewhere, she always has something going on," Paul stated quietly. "I- just don't know if I'm taking her to good enough places, or maybe I'm being too silent, or maybe I'm not good enough for her-"

"Whoah, Paul," Trip interrupted. "Calm down. Dawn likes you. She saw something in you that no one else could. She's just a busy girl, and that's something you'll have to get used to. You just need to calm down."

"You seem to know a lot on the subject," Paul said, slightly surprised at what Trip told him.

"When Iris and I got together, we were polar opposites. So we got to know each other and then it was a lot easier to hang out."

Just then, the school bell rang, and they both headed to class. Their first class was Pokemon Type Study with Professor Juniper. Paul sat down at his desk and soon afterwards, Dawn came to sit with him. She smiled and did a little wave, but then Professor Juniper entered with two kids, and everyone fell silent.

"Hello, class!" the professor said. "Today before we start, we have two exchange students from Kalos!" Everybody whispered to each other as Juniper gestured to the two teens beside her.

"This is Clemont-" The older of the two stepped forward and smiled nervously. He had large round glasses, light blue eyes and blonde hair. "-and this is Serena!" The girl was a bit taller than the boy, despite being younger. She had long, dirty blonde hair and greyish-blueish eyes. She smiled cheerfully and waved. "Let's all do our best to make our new students welcome!"

Serena sat down by Ash, and Clemont sat down next to Drew. "All right," Juniper said, writing _"Fairy type"_ on the chalkboard. "Since our new students are from the Kalos region, we are going to study a type that originated there: the Fairy type."

After class, Paul walked by Dawn and her roommates talking to Serena. Something about going to lunch. He shrugged, and headed down the hallway to his next class.

 **How was this chapter? The chapters are probably going to be short, but oh well! Sorry if either Trip or Paul is OOC. Thanks!**


	3. Operation Welcome to Sinnoh!

**Okay, the last one was short, but I'm gonna make up with this one. Hope you guys are enjoying it so far! If you want to read the first story, check it out on my profile! BTW, I'm not going into a ton of detail about the basketball playing, because I know nothing about the sport, XD.**

Ash woke up with blinding sunlight in his eyes. He snapped awake, and checked his clock. "9:30!?" Ash cried. "We're gonna be late for class!"

"So the zombie finally rises," Gary commented. "And we aren't going to be late, it's Saturday, doofus." He tossed two empty hair gel bottles into the trash can. Ash looked at Gary with revulsion.

"All of _that's_ in your hair?"

"Yeah," Gary said, clearly offended. "How much do you put in yours?"

"None!"

Ash looked around for his Pokemon partner, Pikachu. He found it sleeping under the desk by Barry's bed. He walked over and shook it. "Hey Pikachu! Wake up!"

Pikachu zapped Ash with a Thunderbolt, leaving him electrocuted. "Okay- maybe just five more minutes-" he stuttered before falling to the ground.

Barry walked out of the bathroom, combing his hair. "Okay! Today I've came up with Barry Operation #58!"

"What is it this time?" Drew asked, bored, feeding his Roserade some Pokeblock (a type of Pokemon food).

"Relax, no more matchmaking... for now," Barry said, grinning. "I call this one: Operation Welcome to Sinnoh!"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gary asked, cautiously.

"You know that new kid, Clemont? Well I think we should befriend him. He's probably lonely."

"But what about the girl, Serena?" Ash asked.

"The girls have already got her covered, they're taking her out to lunch or something," Barry said, carelessly.

"Okay, let's do it," Drew said. "Where is he now?"

"I dunno. Let's go find him!"

Clemont was sitting outside on a bench, reading a book. He hadn't really met anybody yet. Serena had ran off with a couple girls, and he had nobody to talk with. Some boys were playing basketball at a court nearby, but Clemont didn't really pay attention to them.

It had been a while since he'd read a good book series, so he was completely immersed in what he was reading, and didn't notice the boy approaching him from behind until he felt a tap on the shoulder. He turned around to see a kid with black hair and a Pikachu on his shoulder. He was in Clemont's class, but they hadn't talked until now.

"Hey," he said. "Clemont, right? I'm Ash, and this is Pikachu. The guys and I were wondering if you wanted to shoot some hoops with us."

"Well, I don't know much about sports-" Clemont started, but Ash interrupted him.

"Don't worry, we'll teach 'ya! Come on!" Clemont was dragged basically against his will to the basketball court and was introduced to Barry, Gary, and Drew. They played basketball for a bit, but just ended up sitting down and chatting.

"So what d'ya think about all the lovely girls here, Clemont?" Gary asked, smirking. Clemont's face went cherry red.

"W-whoa!" he stammered. "I've only been here five days!"

"What about that girl that came with you, Serena? She's quite the hottie," Drew questioned, nudging him.

"Wait, what?" Clemont exclaimed, going a deeper shade of red. "Ser-Serena? N-no, we're just friends! At least I think we are- I mean, that's probably all she thinks of me anyway, but-"

"Whoa," Barry said, holding a hand up. "We didn't mean to fluster you."

"No, it's okay," Clemont said, readjusting his glasses. "Let's just change the subject." They talked for what seemed like hours, then they separated, after agreeing to meet again soon. Clemont had a smile on his face when he walked back into his dorm.

 **Good? Bad? Well, give me a review and tell me what you think!**


	4. An Interesting Discussion!

**Hey! So I think I've got the plot figured out. We'll see! I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

Dawn sat down in a booth with Serena, Iris, Misty and May. Within a few minutes, a waitress brought their milkshakes to the table. "Thanks!" said Misty. The waitress looked up from her phone.

"Oh, uh yeah." She walked away.

"Sooo, Rena, can I call you Rena? Okay," Iris said, looking seriously at Serena. "We come to this place when we mean business."

"B-business?" Serena stammered, looking nervous.

"She means boys, Serena," Dawn explained. Serena let out a big sigh of relief.

"Oh, is that all?" she asked, putting a hand on her chest. "I thought you guys had to give me some sort of harsh, 'welcome to Sinnoh' orientation."

"We come to this place when, and only when, we need to talk about boys," Misty said, dramatically.

"And also when we want to welcome a new student," May added.

"So," Iris began. "Have any boys caught your eye?"

"Well," Serena said, clearly thinking. "That Ash boy is kinda cute." The four other girls looked at each other. They knew Serena liking Ash was a big no-no, since he and May were dating.

"Hey, Rena, can you give us a moment?" Iris asked.

"Oh, sure!" Serena said, looking slightly confused. The girls went into the hallway leading to the restrooms.

"What should we do?" Dawn asked. "She's obviously got it bad for Ash."

"Maybe it's just a small crush," Iris suggested.

"Maybe," Misty replied. "But I can see it in her eyes the way I could see Dawn's crush on Paul in her eyes."

"Should we tell her-hey! You knew all along?" Dawn protested.

"Duh."

"But anyways, should we tell her about May and Ash?" Iris asked, uncertainly.

"I don't want to hurt her feelings," May said, looking distressed.

"Let's just not tell her yet," Misty decided. "Maybe we will later, but we have to keep her as our friend." The group of friends halfheartedly agreed, and they walked back to the table to join Serena.

* * *

It had been around a month since they'd first taken Serena to lunch for the first time. Serena became close friends with them, but they hadn't told her about Ash yet. They just didn't have the heart to.

One day, they all got a text from Dawn saying: **Meet me in the dorm! I've got awesome news! :)**

So they all met in the dorm, where Dawn was sitting on the bed, bouncing excitedly. "Hey Dawn," Misty greeted. "Why did you call us here?"

"I've just got news that we are in charge of planning...the Halloween Dance that's next week!" Dawn exclaimed. They all squealed girlishly, except for Iris, who looked rather uncomfortable.

"Uh...they're putting US in charge of planning that dance in a WEEK?" she asked, skeptically.

"Yes!" Dawn cried. "One of us will be in charge of music, one will be in charge of snacks...everything!"

They all squealed again, except for Iris, who was just smiling nervously. All she could think was that with her four friends in charge, the dance was going to be...interesting.

 **What did you think? Remember to leave some reviews if you like it so far! Bye!**


	5. Drew's Advice

**First of all, I'd like to thank the wonderful people who gave such positive reviews. I can't tell you how much it helps. Second of all, I've got the plot almost completely figured out. Let's get to it!**

* * *

The five friends began to divide out everybody's role in planning the Halloween dance. Dawn was in charge of overall managing everything. Iris was in charge of snacks. May was in charge of music. Misty was in charge of decorating, and Serena, who was a good artist, was in charge of drawing the poster that they were going to put on the bulletin board.

They held their first meeting two days after they received the news. They sat in the middle of the gym (a normal one, not a Pokemon one), where they were planning on setting the dance. They each brought a notebook to write down ideas.

"Okay," Dawn said, looking at them all. "How's everyone doing with their contributions to the dance?"

"Well," Iris began. "I can make a few things, but there's only so much I can cook. That's why I asked that older kid, Cilan, if he could help me make the refreshments, since everyone says he's so good at cooking and all. And he said yes! I'm glad I don't have to make all of those myself!"

"Good," Dawn said, suddenly professional. "May?"

"I couldn't find a band to play for us," May said. "But I could hook up my phone to the speakers and put on music that way."

"That works," Dawn nodded, and turned to Misty. "What about decorations?"

"Well, I haven't thought anything up yet, because I don't know the party's theme," Misty replied.

Dawn put a hand to her forehead. "Gosh, I hadn't even thought about that!" she breathed. "Let's come up with an idea for that."

"Costume party?" Serena asked. They all looked at each other.

"Costume party," they decided.

"So I guess you can just decorate it in any way you like," Dawn told Misty. "Just make sure it screams Halloween."

"Got it."

"Serena? How's it going?"

"I've completed the drawing," Serena said, holding up a drawing of several Ghost and Dark type Pokemon. The girls oohed and aahed. "I just need the info to put on there."

"Let's work on the poster now," Dawn decided. So they spent the next two hours designing and writing out the poster. When they were finally done, they sleepily put it up, and went to bed.

* * *

When Ash came down to the cafeteria, a bunch of people were gathered around the bulletin board. "What's going on?" he asked Drew, who was reading whatever was on the board.

"Apparently, there's going to be a Halloween dance, here look," Drew said, stepping back so Ash could see. The flyer said this:

 **Halloween Costume Dance!**

 **Come celebrate Halloween on October 31, at 7:00 PM, in the gym.**

 **Make sure to bring a costume!**

 **(This dance is boy ask girl. You don't have to have a date, but you'll probably be embarassed if you don't.)**

"Wow, cool!" Ash said, reading it.

"So, bet you're gonna ask May," Drew commented. "Since you two are an 'item' and all."

"I guess so," Ash said, uncertainly. "You?"

"Eh, I'll find someone."

Over the next few days, the dance was the talk of the school. There were girls chattering about boys, and which ones they were hoping would ask them. The boys stayed in groups, nervously talking and avoiding the girls.

One afternoon, Ash was sitting with his roomates at lunch, when a boy approached them. He was tall, with long black hair pulled up in a headband. Ash knew who this was. It was an old friend of his, Tracey Sketchit.

"Hey, Tracey!" Ash exclaimed. "It's been a while, what's up?"

"Actually," the boy said uncomfortably. "I came because I need your guys' help." The four boys looked at each other in surprise.

"Anything," Barry said, staring at him.

"Well, as you guys know, that dance is coming up..."

"Who could forget?" Gary interrupted.

"And, as you guys also know, Misty and I have been going out for a couple months..."

"Yup."

"So, anyways, I want to ask her to the dance, and I need your advice."

"You need OUR advice?" Ash asked incredulously. "I don't know if we can give any..."

"Sure, we can," Drew answered quickly. "Now, come here, and I'll give you my best advice."

* * *

Misty was chatting with May and Dawn in the hallway when she heard a familiar voice.

"Misty?"

She turned around to the sight of a bouquet of roses in her face. She could just barely see the face of her boyfriend behind it.

"Trace? What are you-"

"M-Misty! These are for you!" he said loudly, and rather nervously. Everybody walking by in the hallway stopped to stare.

"What are you doing?" Misty asked, grabbing the flowers and staring at Tracey.

"Uh, these roses are for you, because they, uh, reflect your-" Misty put her hand on his mouth.

"Tracey! What are you getting at?" she asked, slightly smiling.

"Mist, will you go to the dance with me?" he blurted. Misty grinned.

"Of course, I was waiting for you to ask me," she said, hugging him. Everybody in the hallway started applauding. Misty whirled around and gave them a death stare. The crowd dispersed quickly.

"But what was with the roses and the drama?"

"Oh, I got some advice from Drew," Tracey replied.

"That explains it," Misty said, smirking at Drew, who was giving Tracey a thumbs-up from afar.

 **What did you think? I decided to give Misty and Tracey a moment, because their last moment in the first fic was very cliche. Hopefully you liked it. Until next time!**


	6. The Truth About Ash

**Hi! Once again, I'd like to thank you guys for your support! I'm kind of a noob when it comes to writing fics, so your positive reviews and advice mean a lot to me.**

* * *

Misty spent the next few days excitedly putting together her costume. Iris had been asked to dance by Trip shortly after Misty was asked by Tracey, and she said yes. Misty had already decided that she and Tracey were going to be Ariel and Eric from _The Little Mermaid_ , so she had convinced him, and started making her costume right away. The girls had never seen her so excited. Iris however, was very nervous.

"What costumes should we wear?" she asked them anxiously.

"You could be Tarzan and Jane," suggested May.

Iris snorted. "Trip dressed up as Tarzan? Not likely."

"Oh, _he_ wouldn't be Tarzan, you would!" Serena said, giggling. They all burst into hysterical laughter thinking of Trip coming to the dance dressed as Jane.

"I'll think of something later," Iris decided after the giggling subsided.

"Oh, I just hope Ash asks me to the dance," Serena sighed. "That would be so wonderful!" The girls exchanged nervous glances.

"R-Rena?" Iris began. Serena looked cheerfully at her.

"Yeah?"

"N-never mind."

* * *

Trip and Paul were sitting at their table for lunch. Paul was digging into his burger silently, while Trip, lost in thought, slowly nibbled his. Trip gazed at Iris, sitting down at her table with all her friends. Cilan approached her and said something inaudible from across the lunchroom. She smiled, and stood up. They chatted for a bit, then walked away together.

"Hmph," Trip huffed. Paul looked at him.

"What's up with you?"

"She spends all her time with _him_ lately," Trip mumbled spitefully. "Even more than me. I thought we were supposed to be dating."

"Well, you asked her to the dance didn't you?" Paul asked.

"Yeah."

"And she said yes?"

Trip nodded.

"Then what's the problem?"

"You see how they flirt with each other?" Trip questioned.

"I didn't think you were the jealous type," Paul interjected, smirking. "Besides, I don't think that's flirting."

"Ugh, I mean, am I good enough for her? I don't even know what I'm wearing to the dance." Suddenly Paul grabbed his shoulder.

"Trip," he said firmly. "We had this same conversation last week. Iris likes you. Now shut up." And with that, he went back to his burger. Trip shook his head, and went back to his.

* * *

"Come one, Clemont, she'll say yes."

"No she won't. She doesn't like me like that."

"If you don't step up, someone will ask her first!"

"The dance is tomorrow night!"

"Man up, bro!"

"I- I just can't!" Clemont yelled. When everyone in the hallway stared at him, he cleared his throat, and said quietly, "I'm just not brave enough."

"Don't worry, if she's your real friend, she'll understand," Ash said. "Here, I'll go ask May right now and show you how it's done." He turned to the direction of May across the hallway, who was talking with Dawn.

"Hey, May!" Ash called. "Wanna go to the dance with me?"

"Sure!" she replied, and went back to talking with Dawn.

"See?" Ash said, turning back to Clemont. "Easy as pie!"

"I think I can do that," Clemont said, uncertainly.

"Some advice," Drew said. "Flowers. What's her favorite kind of flower?"

"Uh, I think she likes zinnias, but-"

"Then go get her some zinnias!" Gary commanded, handing him some money, and shoving him in the opposite direction. "And don't come back until you've asked her!"

* * *

May and Dawn met the other girls at their favorite spot. Under the maple tree looking over a pond.

"Hey guys!" May greeted.

"Hey," Iris replied.

"Hey, Dawn, remember this is the place where Paul first asked you out?" Misty asked.

Dawn smiled softly, and nodded. She did remember it, like it was yesterday. She and Paul had ended up having a conversation, and opened up to one another here. Then, he asked her out on a date.

"Oh, Dawn, the story about you and Paul is so romantic!" Serena gushed. "I really hope Ash will ask me to the dance. I bet he's really romantic."

"He is," May blurted, then covered her mouth. Serena looked at her suspiciously.

"How do you know?" she asked. All the girls looked uncomfortably at each other.

"Serena," May said, sadly. "Ash has already asked me. We've actually been dating for months." Serena looked at her with wide, unbelieving eyes. The girls all felt terrible. They knew it. They'd let her crush on Ash grow too much.

"You...listened to me ramble on about how cute Ash was, and how I had a crush on him for weeks, and never told me he was already taken?" Serena asked, glaring at them, her voice rising with every word.

"R-Rena, we-"

"No! I don't want to hear it!" Serena yelled, her eyes filling up with tears. "Leave me alone!" The girls watched sadly as the girl sprinted back towards the school, shoving poor Clemont, who was holding a bouquet of flowers, out of her way.

* * *

 **What did you guys think? See you!**


	7. A Bouquet of Zinnias

**Hello, guys! Thanks for all the reviews for this story! Let's get right to it!**

* * *

Clemont had taken Gary's advice. He'd biked down to a flower shop and bought a bouquet of pink zinnias for Serena. As he biked back, he played how the scene would go in his head. He would approach Serena, greet her, whip out the flowers and say something witty. Then he'd ask her to the dance. She'd be flattered, and say yes.

It didn't go that way.

Once he returned to the school, he asked a girl in the hallway named Zoey if she'd seen Serena anywhere. She told him that she'd seen Serena go outside with a couple friends about twenty minutes ago.

He raced outside and looked around. He saw Serena talking with Dawn, Misty, Iris and May. She stood up. Great! She was leaving! Then he could ask her without all her friends watching. But as he got closer, he saw something was wrong. He heard yelling. Serena started running away, towards Clemont. This was it. He held the flowers in front of him.

"Hey, Ser-"

"Not now, Clemont! I don't want to talk!" she yelled, tearfully, shoving him aside.

"-ena?" he finished, looking at her run away in surprise. The realization suddenly dawned on him. Serena was a popular, pretty girl. They may have been friends before, but she had cool, new friends now. She wouldn't be caught dead with a nerd like Clemont at a school dance. He would just embarass her. He couldn't believe he'd been so stupid to think she'd actually go with him. He sadly walked back towards the school. He passed a trash can, throwing the zinnias in it as he walked by.

* * *

'Maybe I could just hang out in the corner with the snacks,' Clemont decided halfheartedly, as he went towards the door. Clemont had began to push the door open, when he heard crying. He turned to see Serena, against a tree, burying her face in her knees.

"Serena?"

She looked up. Her face was tear streaked. "Cl-Clemont?" she whispered, hastily wiping tears from her face. "I-I'm fine! Don't worry!"

"What happened?" he asked, concerned, walking towards her and squatting down. "Were your friends bullying you?"

"N-no, it's not their fault," Serena sniffled. "It's mine, for being so s-stupid."

"What happened?" Clemont asked again. "You can tell me." She still looked doubtful, and he added, "I won't think it's stupid. Come on, I'm your friend."

She looked at him, sighed, and began. "W-well, you see, that boy Ash...well, I kind of had a crush on him." Clemont nodded, feeling his hopes crumble. She liked someone else.

"I thought it was just going to be little," Serena continued. "But it just kept growing, and growing. Then I started gaining unexpected hopes. For Ash to notice me, for him to talk to me, for him to ask me to the dance." Tears were beginning to well up in her eyes again. Clemont nodded again.

"T-then, a little while ago, I mentioned that I hoped Ash would ask me to the dance to my friends. They just looked at each other, and then May said that she and Ash were going to the dance together, and that they had been dating for months!" Serena cried, wiping tears away again. Clemont looked up. So they weren't going to the dance together? She was... free?

"I was angry. Angry at my friends for keeping that for me for so long. I yelled at them, and ran. But now I realize that they were just trying not to hurt my feelings. It's my fault, for not realizing what was going on between Ash and May," Serena said, burying her face in her knees once more. "And now I have no one to go to the dance with!"

Clemont said nothing, because he realized what he had to do. "Stay here, I'll be right back," he assured Serena, and sprinted off. Well, when I say sprinted, it was more like slow jogging. By the time he'd got to the trash can, he was panting and wheezing. He fished the zinnias out of the trash can. They still looked decent. He slowly jogged back to Serena, holding the bouquet behind his back.

"S-Serena," he said nervously, pulling out the flowers. "I know I may not be the ideal guy, or the ideal date, but I've been meaning to ask you for a while now." He handed her the flowers. She looked at him, a smile forming on her lips. "W-will you go to the, uh, dance with-" He didn't finish, because Serena crushed him with a tight hug.

"Of course," she said, smiling.

They stayed in that position for a long time.

* * *

Dawn listened happily, as Serena came back to tell them about her new date to the dance. Apologies were exchanged. After all of that was done, May asked, "Hey Dawn, where's Paul? Why hasn't he asked you to the dance?"

"He's playing basketball with Ash, Gary, Barry and Drew," Dawn replied.

"Then why is he over there?" Iris asked, pointing. Dawn whirled around. Paul was storming away from the basketball court.

"Uh oh." Dawn started running towards Paul. Once she reached him, she pulled on his sleeve. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Paul turned around, looking bitter. "Ash Ketchum."

"What about him?"

"He and his friends. I go to play basketball with them, and they give me this weird look. It's like I'm an alien or something," he said, and started walking again.

"Did they say yes?" Dawn asked, trying to walk beside him.

"Yes, but that's not the point. Your friends don't like me Dawn. They think I'm a heartless jerk, still. Maybe that's just who I am." He continued walking.

Dawn ran in front of him, and grabbed his shoulders. "Paul, you are _not_ a heartless jerk," she said seriously. "Don't ever think that. I've seen the real Paul, and he's not a heartless jerk. He's the sweetest, most caring boy I've ever met. And they don't think that about you either. They're just not used to you."

"...Really?"

"Really," Dawn replied, hugging him. He drew back, slightly. "Sorry," Dawn apologized, slowly letting go. Paul's arms suddenly wrapped around her, to her surprise.

"No," Paul said, looking down at her. "Go ahead." Dawn smiled, and tightened her arms. That two embraced.

" I love you," Paul whispered in her ear, which surprised her. Dawn's smile grew even wider.

"I love you too, Paulie," she said, cheerfully. Paul looked offended.

"Don't call me-" He was interrupted when Dawn stood on her tiptoes and kissed him softly. And suddenly both of their cares melted away. They must have got carried away, be cause after what seemed like a few seconds, they heard Barry shout.

"Hey, Paul! Are you two gonna make out for forever, or do you wanna play some basketball?"

* * *

 **What did you guys think? I enjoyed writing this chapter. FYI, I'm going on vacation for a bit, so it'll be a while before another chapter is uploaded. Bear with me! See ya!**


	8. Iris's Problem

**I'm back! For about the fiftieth time, I'd like to thank you all for reviewing this story! I'd especially like to thank Jpr123, for sticking with me from the beginning! You rock!**

* * *

Misty was reading her favorite novel, _The Secret of the Starmie_. She was about halfway through the book. Currently Haley, the main character, was exploring a dark sea cavern...

 _Haley looked around, nervously. She appeared to be in some sort of sea cave. She could hear the pitter-patter of water hitting the cold stone floor. Haley grabbed a Pokeball, and released her Golduck. "Golduck, I want you to use Flash and light up the area," she muttered. The blue Pokemon nodded._

 _"Gol!" The cave was suddenly flooded with light. Haley looked around. The cave seemed to be deserted. Or so she thought. She heard a scratching noise. Haley slowly looked up. There, hanging from one of the stalactites, was-_

SLAM.

"Hey Misty!" Misty looked up from her book in slight annoyance. There, at the entrance to the dorm, stood a very flustered Dawn. Her cheeks were bright red.

"What's up?" Misty asked, absentmindedly, her mind on getting back to her book.

"I just did the stupidest thing!" Dawn cried, throwing her hands in the air.

"Oh, really?" Misty said, only half paying attention.

"Paul and I were just having a normal conversation, and I just kissed him full on the lips all of a sudden!" Dawn explained, facepalming. "Then Barry interrupted, and I just ran away!"

Dawn had gained Misty's attention fully now. "You were having a normal conversation?"

"Well, we might have been hugging, but-"

"So does that mean you two are going to the dance together?" Misty asked.

"I dunno, I didn't ask..."

"Why don't you just text him and ask?" Misty suggested, returning to her book.

"I- I can't do that!" Dawn stammered. "Not after what I just did!"

Misty stood up, setting her book down. "Dawn Berlitz, if you don't text Paul I will!" Dawn gasped.

"You _wouldn't_."

"Try me," Misty challenged, grabbing Dawn's phone off of the desk. Dawn tackled her, trying to grab the phone. The two wrestled for the phone. May and Iris entered the room, and just stood in the doorway, staring at the two. Finally Misty emerged, victorious with the phone. She found Paul's contact number, labeled _Grouchface_. She opened the text screen, and typed:

 _Hey, are we gonna go to the dance together, then?_

A few moments later, a message appeared under Misty's.

 _Sure. Let's do it._

"See?" Misty said triumphantly, handing the phone to Dawn with pride. Dawn shook her head.

"Mist, I don't know if I should thank you or strangle you."

"Ooookay," Iris said, slowly, Misty and Dawn noticing her for the first time.

"Oh, hey Iris, May," Dawn said wearily.

"Trip and I are going as a zombie and a zombie bride," Iris continued. "We were just talking." the girls nodded.

"Cool!"

"Here, let me find my costume," Iris continued, digging through her bag. She pulled out a giant roll of bandages, and gasped. "Oh my Zekrom, I totally forgot!" she exclaimed.

"What?" May asked.

"I'm supposed to be helping Cilan out in the kitchen with making snacks tomorrow night, dressed as a mummy, at the _exact_ time I'm supposed to be dancing with Trip!" Iris said in sudden realization, bringing her hands up to her face. "I can't cancel on Cilan, because otherwise he'd be the only guy in the kitchen, and I can't cancel on my date!"

"Uh oh..." Dawn said.

"I'll just have to do some sort of weird switch between the two, I guess," Iris decided sadly. "I wish there was something else I could do." The girls said nothing. They couldn't think of anything else Iris could do. They could only hope the dance would work out for their friend.

* * *

 **Sorry that was so short! The chapter about the dance is probably going to be pretty long anyways. I hope you guys are enjoying this story so far!**


	9. Preparing for the Dance

**Hey! SO sorry about making you guys wait. I've been thinking about the plot, and adding more detail to everything overall. I read some of the most recent comments, and you guys are a HUGE help! Thanks for the support!**

* * *

Dawn got up the next morning feeling the most stressed she'd ever felt in a long time. She was surprised to discover that her dorm room was completely empty. She looked at her clock. It was only 8:00. She hopped out of bed and pulled her clothes on, thinking about everything she was going to prepare for the dance before the time came. She pulled her hair up in a ponytail, and rushed out of her room towards the cafeteria.

She entered the large room and looked around. Her friends were nowhere to be seen. She headed over to the boys' table, where Ash, Gary, Barry and Drew were scarfing down their breakfast. "Hey, Dawn, what's up?" Barry greeted through a mouthful of pancake.

"Hey guys," Dawn waved. "Have you seen the other girls?" Ash shook his head, drowsily.

"Nah," he mumbled. He seemed to be half-asleep. Drew caught him just before he fell face first into his scrambled eggs.

"I think I saw them headed towards the gym," he said apologetically. Dawn thanked them, and headed down the hallway towards the gym. She observed a paper sign taped to the door that said: **We are currently setting up the Halloween dance! Please do not enter the gym.** She opened the doors to see May, Misty and Iris decorating the gym, setting up speakers, and putting up tables all by themselves.

"Hey guys!" Dawn cried, walking over towards her friends. "You're up early."

"Well, why not?" Iris asked. "The dance is _tonight_."

"The place looks amazing," Dawn observed, looking around. Green, orange, and black streamers hung from decorations on the walls. There were ghosts, pumpkins... Fake blood spattered the walls and floor...

"Yeah, Misty did an awesome job," May complimented, putting her arm around Misty's shoulder. Misty blushed modestly.

Suddenly, they heard the doors open. "Hey, we're busy right-" Misty said, beginning to turn around. They were surprised to hear Serena's voice.

"Don't turn around!" she shrieked. They all stood still. Misty stiffened. "Okay, turn around, but with your hand over your eyes..." Serena continued. They turned around, following her orders.

"Okay...You can look!"

They all uncovered their eyes, and squealed in delight at what they saw. Serena's hair was short! It wasn't incredibly short, just slightly above her chin. "You cut your hair!" Dawn cried.

"So THAT'S where you were last night," Iris recalled. Serena nodded.

"I thought maybe I could do something fun for the dance," she said cheerfully. "You guys like it?"

"I, for one LOVE it," Misty said, happily. They all agreed, admiring Serena's haircut.

"But anyways, back to the task at hand," Serena continued. "The gym looks awesome! It's like the perfect mix of 'cute Halloween' and 'creepy Halloween'!"

"Yeah!" May agreed. "Okay guys, I have two things to announce."

"Okay, lay it on us," Iris said.

"First, I've found us a DJ," May continued. "Barry said he could man the speakers and the playlist, since he wasn't going with someone anyway. Second, I've got a fog machine for our dance..." Before she could continue, the girls mouths dropped to the floor.

"You got...a _fog machine_?!" Dawn asked, gaping at her. May looked confused.

"Yeah. So?"

"Who's funding this?" Was Iris's incredulous question.

"...My dad," May whispered, blushing.

"You got your dad to pay for a fog machine?"

"He's, uh... not the poorest guy around." When they looked at May in disbelief, she added, "He's a Gym Leader, also."

"Well no wonder!" Misty cried.

"Let's just move on please..." May said, embarrassed. They all sat down, talking about everything they were going to do. When they were finished, they went back to setting up. They had a _lot_ to do before the dance that night.

* * *

Ash paced around the dorm, muttering to himself.

"'May, _haunted_ to see you.' No, that's stupid. 'Oh, hello May! You gave me quite the scare!' Eh, no..."

"Are you coming up with pickup lines?"

Ash whirled around to see Barry, Gary and Drew all staring at him, failing to hide smirks.

"I-"

"Dude. You're May's _boyfriend,_ " Barry said. "You don't have to come up with _pickup lines._ "

"I know, I- We've just never got super romantic before, okay? I'm nervous." Ash defended. Drew awkwardly patted him on the back.

"You're the only one out of the four of us who actually managed to land a date," he said. "Embrace it."

"I...guess you're right."

"What are you two going as?" Gary asked. A smile formed on Ash's lips. He went to the closet and pulled out a costume.

"Ha! You're such a nerd!"

"That's _so_ you, Ash!"

"That is SO cool!"

"May's gonna love it!"

* * *

Misty brushed her hair out, and pulled on a pink dress. It looked exactly like the dress Ariel wore in _The Little Mermaid._ She tied a bow atop her hair.

"It's looking super cute, Misty," Dawn complimented, applying black lipstick to accompany her vampire queen costume.

"Thanks!"

Iris sat on the bed, smearing green face paint all over her face for her zombie costume. She put makeup remover and her mummy costume in a bag. "Cilan's not opening up snacks until half an hour after the dance starts," she'd informed them earlier. "So I'll just switch costumes every now and then. Trip doesn't need to know." She finished applying the face paint, and put the rest in her bag.

May was in the bathroom, because she "wanted her costume to be a surprise". None of the girls knew what costume she had.

Serena and Clemont's costumes didn't actually match, but they were fine with it. Serena was going as a fairy, while Clemont was a mad scientist. Serena pulled on her fairy wings. Her wings weren't dollar store fodder; they were so incredibly intricate that one would look at her and think she was a real fairy. She was wearing a long, shimmery dress, which was a pretty teal color. Her face makeup was beautiful. Serena wasn't messing around, that was for sure.

"May?" Misty asked, knocking on the bathroom door. "What's going on in there?"

"S-sorry!" May's voice apologized. "It's just, this hairstyle is so annoying to-" She shrieked. "-sorry, just pulled my hair. But I'm almost... Done!" She exited the bathroom, showing off her costume.

"Ash is going to _love_ that, May."

"No wonder it was hard for you to do your hair."

* * *

 **Sorry that was short! The next chapter is the dance! What will go down? *spooky laughter* Okay, I'll stop now...**


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